New Program Helps Parents Talk to Teens

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Jay Barrett/KMXT
A new project from the Alaska Network on Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault launched in February is aimed at helping parents talk to their teens about healthy relationships. “Talk Now, Talk Often, Alaska” offers parents and caregivers resources to help them broach the touchy subject of relationships, and try to break through the tough shell teens sometimes have around them when it comes to talking to the older crowd.
Claudia Plesa is a project coordinator with the Alaska Network:
“This is a brand new effort. You know, we do a lot of victim services here at the Alaska Network. We work with a lot of organizations to provide those services. Another piece of our work is to prevent violence before it happens. And part of our work is to work with teens to inform other teens. So peer-to-peer kind of education around what is a healthy relationship. What we have found lately is that parents aren’t part of that conversation, and kids are learning what a relationship is, or what a healthy relationship is from the media or from their friends. So we wanted to provide some resources for parents to really have them start being part of that conversation.”
Trina Bashem of Kodiak is one of the first parents to try out Talk Now Talk Often. She works at the Kodiak Womens Resource and Crisis Center, and felt this program would fit well with her work.